Confederate's Role In The Civil War

Although the three million Confederate and Union soldiers who participated in the war may have been standing for conflicting causes, at their core, both groups were driven by some of the same basic principles. It seems almost impossible that men were able to endure the carnage of the war, and kept fighting even in the face of insurmountable danger. Soldiers were motivated by a combination of many complex contributing factors, including religion, brotherly bonds, and patriotism.
Many soldiers clung to the religious belief that all events were predestined, that they would die when it as their time, regardless of whether or not they were on the battlefield. This, merged with their fatalistic ideology, which states that all events are inevitable and unalterable, significantly decreased the soldier’s fears and provided some …show more content…
Both sides believed that they were tasked with the protection of the ideals championed by the founding fathers that they so revered, and both claimed that they were fighting for the exact same principles. The Confederates believed that they were struggling to free themselves from the control of the bloated and ineffective Union government, while the Union believed that they were fighting to keep their country a stable and united front. The south justified their rebellion against the “tyrannical” Union by comparing it to America’s endeavor for independence from England, looking to their predecessors for strength and inspiration. They also believed that their loss would result in the subjugation of the south, and the destruction of all the institutions they held dear, such as slavery and aggressive white supremacy. In their eyes, the Union was trying to force racial integration and equality, and they decided that they would rather die than ever live in a world where black and white people are seen as